Analysis of DOST Caraga's project portfolio alignment with the four strategic outcome pillars: Human Well-being Promoted, Wealth Creation Fostered, Wealth Protection Reinforced, and Sustainability Institutionalized.
The Wealth Creation Fostered (O2-WCF) outcome is by far the most prominent strategic outcome in DOST Caraga's portfolio, with 99 of the 122 projects — representing over 81 percent of the portfolio — aligned to this pillar. This dominance reflects the fundamental orientation of DOST Caraga's programming toward economic productivity, enterprise development, and technology-enabled value creation.
The prevalence of O2-WCF aligns logically with the programs' design: SETUP, as the largest program by project count, is entirely oriented toward business productivity improvement. LGIA's most numerous projects support food innovation, agri-business incubation, and market expansion for regional enterprises. The O2-WCF outcome encompasses all activities that directly increase the economic output, competitiveness, or market access of Caraga's firms, cooperatives, and communities.
The Sustainability Institutionalized (O4-SI) outcome accounts for 28 projects across the portfolio, representing the second most common outcome alignment. This growing emphasis on sustainability reflects DOST Caraga's deliberate shift toward addressing environmental, climate, and long-term institutional resilience concerns. O4-SI projects include the entire SSCP program (which is structurally designed around smart and sustainable community development), LGIA projects involving renewable energy, circular economy, and climate-smart agriculture, and several SETUP projects that incorporate solar energy systems in business operations.
Notably, many O4-SI projects demonstrate multi-outcome alignment: a substantial share of sustainability-oriented projects are simultaneously tagged under O2-WCF, reflecting the recognition that genuine wealth creation in Caraga must be grounded in ecological sustainability, given the region's dependence on natural resources.
Twenty-four projects are aligned to the Human Well-being Promoted (O1-HWBP) outcome, primarily through food safety and nutrition programs, health innovation, science education, and inclusive technology access. Key projects include the Food Assurance and Safety through S&T in Caraga (FASST CARAGA), Innovating New Food Products for Healthier Options (InnovHealth), the Caraga Black Native Chicken commercialization, sago flour product development, and the Catalyzing Regional Development through STI Ecosystem Strengthening project. The O1-HWBP outcome operationalizes DOST's contribution to SDG 3 (Good Health) and SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) within the regional context.
Eight projects are aligned to Wealth Protection Reinforced (O3-WPR), the least-represented outcome in the portfolio. O3-WPR addresses disaster risk reduction, climate adaptation, and the protection of existing productive assets. Projects under this outcome include the Resilient Caraga RISE program, Science for Prevention and Advanced Risk Knowledge (SPARK), the SARAI Plus Project (which includes an early warning component), and Project FARM in Surigao del Sur. The relatively modest representation of O3-WPR in the portfolio may warrant review, given the region's heightened exposure to typhoons, earthquakes, and El Niño-induced droughts — all of which directly threaten the economic gains achieved under the other three pillars.